Let's party the pirate way

D. had high expectation from his birthday party. It had to be with "pirate flags and lots of black balloons and a cake, when one cake stands on the other."

We had to put up a calendar for him to cross out days that were left before the occasion.

"And what would you like as a present then?" - I did not expect the answer, as D. left to his room with the words "I have to think about it." Ten minutes later, he came running with an announcement: "I want  a batman toy and a super man toy, as these are the superheros that I lack. I need Captain America costume And I want a real camera. Remember, mommy, you have already promised me a pirate bday party!" Speechless, I started to think how to fulfil the requests of the Red Haired Prince of Denmark.

Thanks to all the amazing mom-bloggers of the US and even more amazing ladies on Pinterest I have managed to plan and execute my first pirate birthday party (pinterest board)

In Denmark when a child has a birthday party he or she is inviting the whole kindergarten group home or is holding a party at the daycare. The first task was to convince D. to accept the latter option as the prospect of 17 kids ransacking the house did not appeal to me. Instead we were to hold two parties.

We started with  decorating small pirate ships. My husband became a "paper-ship.making.master" after folding approximately twenty paper boats. It all was worth the efforts: paper boats, stickers and a bunch of very concentrated and occupied kiddies.

Next was a treasure hunt. Children had to find different staffed animals places everywhere around the house. Each animal had a clue with the picture of the next animal from the map. The one who first spotted the pirate filled with chocolate coins, won.

Then everyone was ready for the cake: two level chocolate cake with white chocolate and strawberries filling, decorated with the Jake the Pirate figures.

www.bakingwithlove.dk

First went the treasure chest, the crocodile had to be shared and captain Hook sneaked away on A's plate. The palm tree - well, we found it later without the leaves. And Jake - we've managed to save him for another day. It is fascinating to see how children are choosing the figure they like most: there is a lot of doubt as the choice is extraordinary complicated. How is it possible to decide whether Jake is better than the crocodile? Or whether the treasure chest is bigger than the palm tree?

I somehow feel that a cake like this always adds something special to any birthday experience. Once, I stumbles upon a discussion about birthday traditions. It turns out there are a lot of those, endless number of variations of how to make the day more special. Then I thought that for our family it can be a cake. Also because the only birthday that I remember from my childhood is the one when my mom baked a three levelled cake!

As the cake disappeared from the plates, the kids moved into the garden and occupied the pirate ford, which we created on the swing. There was a real pirate hanging bed inside, a water slide and Jake the pirate.

This little wooden Jake took a lot of my energy and almost all creativity I had. But those two evening me and my husband spent making it were worth it, just to see the thrill on D's face when he saw the figure for the first time. (for those who want to make a Jake of their own - use thin wood, which is easy to cut and paint on, and acrylic paint.)

Happy birthday little Mr.Twister D.!